


Flushed Cheeks And Tickled Ivory

by elizainlove



Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Light-Hearted, Love, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Music, Platonic Relationships, Self-Indulgent, light bickering, m/m - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-14 14:55:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,645
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28797207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elizainlove/pseuds/elizainlove
Summary: Something small and self indulgent.Anna realises Thomas and Jimmy are together, then watches as Jimmy teaches Thomas to play the piano. A lot of blushes, soft brushes of the hand, and bickering from Thomas and Jimmy. Consideration, thinking, and gentle smiles from Anna.
Relationships: Anna Bates & Jimmy Kent, Thomas Barrow & Anna Bates, Thomas Barrow/Jimmy Kent
Comments: 3
Kudos: 61





	Flushed Cheeks And Tickled Ivory

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this mostly finished on a google doc for far too long. I kept thinking I would turn it into something bigger but I doubt that will ever happen so here you go. 
> 
> I mention Sybil's death but aside from that there is nothing harsh in here.

It all happened so slowly and carefully over such an extended period of time, that it had been easy to overlook, but then, she supposed that had been the point. Anna had stopped noticing the way the two men barely ever parted, each taking note of the others whereabouts from passersby at the times of his absence. She'd stopped seeing how they hid behind streams of tobacco once their work day was done, grey tendrils spiraling around the two figures at the shadowy end of the hall. She'd long ago stopped registering the slightly awkward way the others were often forced to step between their conversation, as they stood propping up either side of a doorway, their shoulders touching the same frame but never one another.

That night however, was different. It was a tiny thing really, which caused her change in vision. But once she’d seen she couldn't believe the whole world, much less their corner of it, wasn't alight with the news. Thomas Barrow and Jimmy Kent were utterly and undeniably in love. 

They were ensconced in their usual seats far away from the others, heads bent close in secret whispers, but that was fine, that was normal. When had it become normal? Anna couldn’t say. The lights downstairs had been on the blink for days, occasionally flickering off and on. Maybe they had been taking advantage of this to sit closer? Or maybe they were just so lost in one another by this point that they failed to register their positioning. Anna found she and John sometimes did that, just drifted away on their own little cloud. Anna was tired, truly very very tired. Lady Mary had been particularly demanding of late and could not be cajoled into telling the trusted maid why. 

She had been sitting gazing into nothing, eyes slightly out of focus when the lights had clicked off. If anyone made noises of frustration they didn’t penetrate Anna’s exhausted mind. The sound of the flint-wheel striking flint was followed by a burst of orange flame from Thomas’ lighter, all of which Anna heard and saw as if in slow motion, the sound reverberating through her head. In the flair of fire she saw the end of something Thomas was saying, the slight hitch of Jimmy’s breath and flush upon his cheek. Just as Jimmy looked shyly down and began to answer, a foolish grin spreading over his handsome features, the lights switched on again and time returned to normal.

From then on it was as if Thomas had set fire to the veil which had concealed them up till now and she found many more tiny moments to gaze upon. 

Although none of the moments which followed were quite as poetic as the first, Anna found they warmed her heart just as much. It was late and the house maid was waiting on Mr Bates to reappear after dressing his Lordship, the servants hall held only herself, Thomas, and Jimmy. Jimmy had announced earlier at dinner of his intentions to teach Mr Barrow piano and most had laughed. Thomas had just looked smugly back and said that if a little squirt like Jimmy could manage it how hard could it be? However, Anna had thought she spied some embarrassment under the superiority and sure enough it was only when all bar the three had staggered off to bed that the lesson began. 

“Well come on then Thomas” Jimmy slapped his cards down on the well worn tabletop with a satisfied grunt, it seemed he had won the final round “No time like the now”

Thomas followed suit but with much slower movements, shooting the tiniest of half glances toward Anna “It’s ‘no time like the present’ you uncultured swine”

Rather than bark at Thomas’ insult Jimmy’s grin widened still yet, and he stood from his seat, reaching his arms up to the sky in a lions stretch “You can’t call a pianist uncultured” He wagged a finger at the dark haired man opposite him “Especially one who is about to share his great talents with the likes of you, a mere Under Butler” 

Anna tried to stifle a small laugh with her sewing at Thomas’ mingled look of outrage and irrepressible fondness. It was like his face never quite knew what to do when the other man was around. She was sure more expressions passed over his features in ten minutes with Jimmy than in a week with anyone else. 

Jimmy shot her a wink and Thomas a glare “Come on it’s only Anna. Come join me on this bench or I’ll….erm…”

Thomas, now with a cigarette between his fingers all but ‘hurumped’, “irritate me to death?” but he acquiesced, as they all knew he would, and grumbling went to sit alongside Jimmy “Go on then Chopin show me what you’ve got”

Anna got up to make some tea, after all it wasn’t their fault she was still there to interrupt their fun. She smiled to herself as the sounds of their bickering followed her through to the kitchen. 

“So your hands go like this see…..No not like that, no do it how i’m showing you you banana” Jimmy was shaping up to be a diligent teacher then.

“It’s not my fault my hands are bigger”

“They ARE NOT”

“You’ve got big palms and stubby little fingers, mine are long and elegant….royal, some might say”

A scoff “Lines like that might work in Crowborough but not at my piano bench”

Something muttered too low for Anna to hear then snorts of suppressed laughter.

“Right see, look this is what - no stop that” The sound of the beginning of a chord, Jimmy’s cackling laughter and a clunk of wrong keys “You can’t just push down over my hand, Thomas. I am the example not the instrument”

“Then why are you so easy to play?” Thomas’ soft laughter “Ouch hey no, ow fine” More laughing “I’ll take it seriously, stop harming your student”

“I’ll get the rod if you don’t start behaving”

At this point Anna considered herself lucky the kettle chose this time to whistle. Once the tea was made things seemed to have quietened down, the laughter was gone but muttering and music floated down the hall towards her. She followed the sounds, stepping lightly to avoid disturbing the two men. 

She stopped at the entrance to the hall, cupping her tea in her cold hands and allowing a small content smile to spread over her face. The room was filled with soft yellowish light and odd sounds. The contrasting men sat elbow to elbow, thigh to thigh on the music bench, one tall, dark and broad shouldered, the other smaller, blonde and athletic. Their heads were bowed close as Jimmy brushed his hands over the back of Thomas’, correcting them then pressing the pads of particular fingers into each key gently.

If Anna had known all those years ago that the snarling spiteful and vindictive Thomas Barrow was capable of such gentleness would that have changed things? Would she have tried harder to break a window in Thomas’ tower? Would it have even worked? 

Unbidden, the memory of the night Lady Sybil died surfaced, Thomas had been so upset. Back then it had been hard to imagine there was any unrotten core left in the man and yet he had cried for the loss of a woman he had called a friend. Rumours about this reaction and possible reasons for it had circulated for weeks after, but Anna had never believed them. Even then she and a lot of the older staff had their suspicions about their difficult young man. And in retrospect it was easy to see why it might have worked between them. Thomas was prickly even in his best moods but there was more to him than that, so much more, and Lady Sybil had a talent for kindness and seeing through people's outer layers. Anna supposed this was one of the reasons she and Lady Mary had created such a bond. 

But she was getting needlessly maudlin, now. She gave herself a tiny shake and a sip of cooling tea, refocusing her eyes on the room before her. 

They were still there, of course. Close enough to breathe the same air and all but holding hands over the keys. Thomas’ head was drooping towards the blonde’s shoulder. The hour was late and Jimmy’s soft playing filled their space as he guided his lover’s fingers across the ivories. 

A distant rhythmic tapping noise brought reality crashing back to all three of them and the two men on the bench started slightly, each pulling away from the other, turning toward the sound and catching sight of Anna. Jimmy gave her a quick guilty once over before turning right around to face the piano once more, but Thomas stayed facing her. His puzzled appraisal made her shift and blush, she after all, had been caught just as much as they had. She was the intruder, not them.

Anna didn’t know what was written across her face but she knew it couldn’t be anything bad. She felt more peaceful than she had all week. She tried a small smile, and received a flustered blush in return. Thomas didn’t know what to do with this reaction.

“Please don’t stop on my account, you’re both sounding lovely together” She smiled warmly at Thomas whose blush deepened, but a small grin lit up his face which he instantly hid with a duck of his head.

There was a moments silence then an exhalation of breath from Jimmy “Well?” He gently took Thomas’ hand “Don’t think you get out of lessons just because we have an audience”

Anna is certain the image of a bashful and utterly happy Thomas will be engraved in her memory for years to come.


End file.
